Emperor Menelik II (Ge'ez ምኒልክ) baptized as Sahle Maryam (August 17, 1844 – December 12, 1913), was nəgusä nägäst of Ethiopia from 1889 to his death. Note: This article contains special characters. ... August 17 is the 229th day of the year (230th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Jan. ... December 12 is the 346th day (347th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar, with 19 days remaining. ... Year 1913 (MCMXIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar). ... The Emperor (Geez ንጉሠ ነገሥት, , King of Kings) of Ethiopia was the hereditary ruler of Ethiopia until the abolition of the monarchy in 1975. ... Year 1889 (MDCCCLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ...

Menelek II

Subject died 1913, so the image is at least that old. ...

Menelik's life as ruler of Ethiopia

The son of Negus Haile Melekot of Shewa, prince Sahle Maryam was born in Ankober, Shewa. Upon the death of his father in 1855 he, just named as his successor as king of Shewa by his father, was taken prisoner by Emperor Tewodros II, a former minor noble originally named Kassa of Qwara, who had usurped the Imperial throne from the last Emperor of the elder Gondar branch of the Solomonic dynasty, Emperor Yohannes III or from emperor Sahle Dengel. Young Sahle Maryam of Shewa was imprisoned on Tewodros' mountain stronghold of Magdala, but was treated well by the Emperor, even marrying Tewodros's daughter Alitash. Upon his imprisonment, his uncle, Haile Mikael had been made ruler of Shewa by Emperor Tewodros II with the title of Merid Azmatch. However, Merid Asmatch Haile Mikael rebelled against Tewodros, resulting in his being replaced by the non-royal Ato Bezabih as governor of Shewa. Ato Bezabih also promptly rebelled against the Emperor and proclaimed himself King of Shewa. Although the Shewan royals imprisoned at Magdalla by Emperor Tewodros had been largely complacent as long as a member of their family ruled over Shewa, this usurpation by a commoner was not palatable to them. They plotted the escape of Sahle Maryam from Magdala; he eventually succeeded at escaping from Magdala and abandoned his wife, returning to Shewa. Upon his return Bezabih's attempt to raise an army against the Prince failed miserably when thousands of Shewans rallied to the flag of the son of Haile Melekot and even Bezabih's own soldiers deserted him for the returning Prince. Sahle Maryam entered Ankober and proclaimed himself Negus (King) with the name of Menelik. Not only did he reclaim his ancestral crown, but at once claimed the Imperial throne for himself as well as a direct male line descendant of Emperor Lebna Dengel. He launched several attacks against Emperor Tewodros II, particularly against the citadel of Magdala. As these campaigns were unsuccessful, he turned his arms to the west, east and south, and annexed much territory to his kingdom. Nevertheless, he maintained his claims to the Imperial Crown of Ethiopia in addition to the royal one of Shewa. Negus is the Amharic word for king. The term negus negust means king of kings, or Emperor. ... His Highness Negus Haile Malakot (1824–9 November 1855) was the king of Shoa between 1847 and 1855. ... Shewa (also spelled Shoa) is a historical region of Ethiopia. ... Ankober is a town of Ethiopia, at one time the capital of the historical Shewa kingdom and later district. ... Year 1855 (MDCCCLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Tewodros II (also known as Theodore II) (born Kassa Hailu) (1818-1868) was an emperor of Ethiopia. ... ... The Solomonid dynasty is the traditional royal house of Ethiopia, claiming descent from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, who is said to have given birth to the traditional first king Menelik I after her Biblically-described visit to Solomon in Jerusalem. ... Emperor Yohannes III or Johannis III (born c. ... Sahle Dengel was negus negusti of Ethiopia intermittently between 1832 and 11 February 1855. ... Amba Mariam is a village in the Amhara region of central Ethiopia. ... Dawit II or David II, better known by his throne name Lebna Dengel (1501 - September 2, 1540) was negus (1508 - 1540) of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonid dynasty. ...

In 1883, Negus Menelik married Taytu Betul, a noblewoman of Imperial blood, and a member of one of the leading families of the regions of Semien, Yejju in modern Wollo, and Begemder. Her paternal uncle Dejazmatch Wube Haile Maryam of Semien had been the ruler of Tigray and much of northern Ethiopia. She had been married four times previously and exercised considerable influence. Menelik and Taytu would have no children. Menelik had, previous to this marriage, sired not only Zauditu (eventually Empress of Ethiopia), but also another daughter, Shoaregga (who married Ras Mikael of Wollo), and a son, Prince Wossen Seged, who died in childhood. 1883 (MDCCCLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Taytu Betul (c. ... Begemder was a province in the north-eastern part of Ethiopia, with its capital city at Gondar. ... Tigray was a province of Ethiopia. ... Empress Zaiditu of Ethiopia Zauditu (also known as Zawditu or Zewditu) (1876 - 1930) was reigning Empress of Ethiopia from 1916 to 1930. ... Ethiopian aristocratic and religious titles used in Ethiopia until the end of the Monarchy in 1974. ... Wollo was a province in the north-eastern part of Ethiopia, with its capital city at Dessye. ...

After the suicide of Tewodros II in 1868 following his defeat at the hands of the British at Magdalla, Menelek continued to struggle against the various other claimants to the Imperial throne. The eventual successor, the Emperor Yohannes IV was able to better exert his claims with the large number of weapons left to him by the British, whom he had aided against Tewodros. Being again unsuccessful, Menelek resolved to await a more propitious occasion and so acknowledged the supremacy of Yohannes. In 1886 Menelik married his daughter Zauditu to the Emperor’s son, the Ras Araya Selassie. Ras Araya Selassie died in May 1888 without any issue by Zauditu of Shewa, and the Emperor Yohannis IV was killed in a war against the dervishes at the battle of Gallabat (Matemma) on May 10, 1889. The succession now lay between the late emperor’s natural son, Ras Mengesha, and Menelik of Shewa, but the latter was able to obtain the allegiance of a large majority of the nobility on November 4. Menelek was consecrated and crowned as Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia shortly afterwards. Menelek argued that while the family of Yohannes IV claimed descent from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba through females of the dynasty, his own claim was based on uninterrupted direct male lineage which made the claims of the House of Shewa equal to those of the elder Gondar line of the dynasty. He and later his daughter Zewditu would be the last Ethiopian monarchs who could claim uninterrupted direct male decent from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba (both Lij Eyasu and Emperor Haile Selassie were in the female line, Eyasu through his mother Shewarega Menelik, and Haile Selassie through his paternal grandmother, Tenagnework Sahle Selassie). 1868 (MDCCCLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Friday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... Year 1886 (MDCCCLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Sunday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Year 1888 (MDCCCLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Tuesday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Combatants Mahdist Sudan Ethiopia Commanders Zeki Tummal Yohannes IV† Strength 85,000 men 130,000 foot soldiers, 20,000 cavalry Casualties 15,000 killed? 15,000 killed? The Battle of Gallabat(a. ... May 10 is the 130th day of the year (131st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1889 (MDCCCLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Mengesha Yohannes (1868 - 1906) was the natural son of Emperor Yohannes IV of Ethiopia, Ras of Tigray, and as a claimant of the Imperial throne is often given the title of prince. ... November 4 is the 308th day of the year (309th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Artists depiction of Solomons court (Ingobertus, c. ... Sheba (from the English transcription of the Hebrew name shva: שבא, and Saba, Arabic: سبأ, also Saba, Amharic: ሳባ) is a southern kingdom mentioned in the Jewish scriptures (Old Testament) and the Quran. ... Overview of the city with Fasilides castle in the center. ...

His reign as emperor

In 1889, while claiming the throne against Mengesha, Menelek signed at Wuchale in Wollo province (Uccialli in Italian), a treaty with Italy acknowledging the establishment of the new Italian Colony of Eritrea with its seat at Asmara. This colony had previously been part of the northern Tigrayan territories from which Ras Mangasha and his allies such as Ras Alula generated support, and the establishment of the Italian colony weakened the northern Rases. However, it was soon found that the Italian version of one of the articles of the treaty placed the Ethiopian Empire under an Italian protectorate, while the Amharic version did not. Emperor Menelik denounced it and demanded that the Italian version be changed. Negotiations failed, so Menelek renounced the treaty, leading Italy to declare war and invade from Eritrea. After defeating the Italians at Amba Alagi and Mekele, Menelik inflicted an even greater defeat on them, at the Battle of Adowa on March 1, 1896, forcing them to capitulate. A treaty was signed at Addis Ababa recognizing the absolute sovereign independence of Ethiopia. Year 1889 (MDCCCLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Wuchale (also spelled Ucciali) is a town in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. ... Asmara Asmara (formerly Asmera) is the capital city and largest settlement in Eritrea, home to a population of around 579,000 people. ... Note: This article contains special characters. ... Ambi-Alagi is a remote area in Ethiopia between Asmara and Addis Ababa. ... Mekelē is a city in the Tigray province of Ethiopia, located some 500 miles north of the capital, Addis Ababa. ... Combatants Ethiopia Kingdom of Italy Commanders Ras Makonnen Oreste Baratieri Strength ~100,000 (80,000 with firearms), Unknown number of artillery and machine guns 17,700 (all with firearms), 56 artillery guns Casualties 4,000-6,000 killed, 8,000 wounded[1] 7,000 killed, 1,500 wounded, 3,000... March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... Year 1896 (MDCCCXCVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display calendar). ...

Menelek II's French sympathies were shown in a reported official offer of treasure towards payment of the indemnity at the close of the Franco-Prussian War, and in February 1897 he concluded a commercial treaty with France on very favorable terms. He also gave assistance to French officers who sought to reach the upper Nile from Ethiopia, there to join forces with the Marchand Mission; and Ethiopian armies were sent towards the Nile, but withdrew when the Fashoda Crisis between France and the United Kingdom cooled off. A British mission under Sir Rennell Rodd in May 1897, however, was cordially received, and Menelek agreed to a settlement of the Somali boundaries, to keep open to British commerce the caravan route between Zaila and Harrar, and to prevent the transit of munitions of war to the Mahdists, whom he proclaimed enemies of Ethiopia. Combatants Second French Empire North German Confederation allied with south German states (later German Empire) Commanders Napoleon III Otto Von Bismarck, Helmuth von Moltke the Elder Strength 400,000 at the beginning of the war 1,200,000 Casualties 150,000 dead or wounded 284,000 captured 350,000 civilian... 1897 (MDCCCXCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... The Nile (Arabic: , transliteration: , Ancient Egyptian iteru, Coptic piaro or phiaro) is a major north-flowing river in Africa, generally regarded as the longest river in the world. ... The Marchand Mission was an expedition undertaken by French emissary Jean-Baptiste Marchand (1863-1934) and 150 men with designs to counter British expansionism in northeastern Africa. ... The Fashoda Incident (1898) was the climax of territorial disputes between imperial Britain and France in Eastern Africa. ... James Rennell Rodd, 1st Baron Rennell of Rodd in the County of Hereford GCB, GCMG, GCVO, PC (9 November 1858– 26 July 1941), known as Sir Rennell Rodd before 1933, was a British diplomat, poet and politician. ... Zaila, or Zetla; a town on the African coast of the Gulf of Aden, 124 m. ... Harar, also spelled Harrar, is a city in Ethiopia, situated in the eastern extension of the Ethiopian highlands, about five hundred km from Addis Ababa. ... Muhammad Ahmad ibn as Sayyid Abd Allah (1844 - June 22, 1885) was a Muslim religious leader, a faqir, in the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. ...

In the following year the Sudan was reconquered by an Anglo-Egyptian army and thereafter cordial relations between Menelik and the British authorities were established. In 1889 and subsequent years, Menelek sent forces to co-operate with the British troops engaged against a Somali leader, Sayyid Mohammed Abdullah Hassan. Mohammed Abdullah Hasssan on his famous horse Xin-Faniin Mohammed Abdullah Hassan (Maxamed Cabdulle Xasan, Sayyid) (born April 7, 1864, in the north of Somalia, died December 21, 1920 in Imi, Ethiopia) was Somalias religious and nationalist leader (called the Mad Mullah by the British, although he was neither...

Menelik had in 1898 crushed a rebellion by Ras Mangasha (who died in 1906). He directed his efforts henceforth to the consolidation of his authority, and in a certain degree, to the opening up of his country to western civilization. Menelik’s clemency to Ras Mangasha, whom he compelled to submit and then made hereditary Prince of his native Tigray, was ill repaid by a long series of revolts by that prince. Menelek focused much of his energy on development and modernization of his country after this threat to his throne was firmly ended. He had granted in 1894 a concession for the building of a railway to his capital from the French port of Djibouti, but, alarmed by a claim made by France in 1902 to the control of the line in Ethiopian territory, he stopped for four years the extension of the railway beyond Dire Dawa. When in 1906 France, the United Kingdom and Italy came to an agreement on the subject, granting control to a joint venture corporation, Menelek officially reiterated his full sovereign rights over the whole of his empire. He successfully played Italians, French, and British against each other. Year 1898 (MDCCCXCVIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... 1906 (MCMVI) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... For alternative meanings for The West in the United States, see the U.S. West and American West. ... 1894 (MDCCCXCIV) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... 1902 (MCMII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Map of Ethiopia showing Dire Dawa (in red). ...

In May 1909 the emperor’s grandson Lij Iyasu (later Iyasu V) by his late daughter Shoaregga, then a lad of thirteen, was married to Romanework Mangasha (b. 1902), granddaughter of the Emperor Yohannes IV by his natural son Ras Mangasha, and was also the niece of Empress Taytu. Two days later Iyasu was publicly proclaimed at Addis Ababa as Menelek’s successor. At that time the emperor was seriously ill and as his ill-health continued, a council of regency -— from which the empress was excluded —- was formed in March 1910. Lij Iyasu's marriage to Romanework Mangasha was dissolved, and he married Seble Wongel Hailu, daughter of Ras Hailu, and granddaughter of Negus Tekle Haymanot of Gojjam. On December 12, 1913 Emperor Menelek II died of a stroke and was buried secretly at the Se'el Bet Kidane Meheret Church on the grounds of the Imperial Palace. Official news of his death was kept from the public for several years by order of Lij Iyasu, although it was soon widely known. Following the deposing of Lij Iyasu in 1917, and the crowning of Menelik's daughter Zewditu as Empress of Ethiopia, Menelik II was reburied in the specially built Baeta Le Mariam Monastery Church of Addis Ababa. 1909 (MCMIX) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... Iyasu (Joshua) (4 February 1887 - 25 November 1935) was the ruler of Ethiopia from 1913 to 1916, when he was deposed. ... 1902 (MCMII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... For the long-distance runner, see Addis Abebe. ... 1910 (MCMX) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Sunday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ... For the long-distance runner, see Addis Abebe. ...

Other Significant Developments During his Reign as Emperor

Menelik II was fascinated by modernity, and like Tewodros II before him, had a keen ambition to introduce the technological and administrative advances of the west into Ethiopia. Following the rush by the major powers to establish diplomatic relations following the Ethiopian victory at Adowa, more and more westerners began to travel to Ethiopia looking for trade, farming, hunting and mineral exploration concessions. Menelik II founded the first modern bank in Ethiopia, the Bank of Abyssinia, introduced the first modern postal system, signed the agreement and initiated work that established the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway with the French, introduced electricity to Addis Ababa, as well as the telephone, telegraph, the motor car as well as modern plumbing. During a particularly devastating famine caused by the decimation of plowing and burden cattle by Rinderpest early in his reign, Menelik II personally went out with a hand held hoe to furrow the fields to show that there was no shame in plowing fields by hand without oxen, something Ethiopian highlanders had been too proud to consider previously. He also forgave taxes during this particularly severe famine. Tewodros II (also known as Theodore II) (born Kassa Hailu) (1818-1868) was an emperor of Ethiopia. ...

Later in his reign, he established the first Cabinet of Ministers to help in the administration of the Empire, appointing trusted and widely respected nobles and retainers to the first Ministries. These ministers would remain in place long after his death, serving in their posts through the brief reign of Lij Iyasu and into the reign of Empress Zewditu. They would in fact play a key role in the deposing of Lij Iyasu.

Miscellaneous

Rumored natural children of the Emperor include Ras Birru Wolde Gabriel and Dejazmach Kebede Tessema. The latter, in turn, was rumored to be the natural grandfather of Colonel Mengistu Haile Mariam, the communist leader of the Derg, who eventually deposed the monarchy and assumed power in Ethiopia from 1974 to 1991. However, the only children that Menelek II acknowledged publicly were Zauditu, Shoaregga and Wossen Seged. Of these three, only Shoaregga has present day descendants. Mengistu Haile Mariam Mengistu Haile Mariam (IPA: mɛngəstuː hɑjəlɛ mɑːʀjɑm) (born 1937[1] [2]) is a Communist politician who was the President of Ethiopia from 1977 to 1991. ... Derg party badge, c1979. ...

During the 1890s, Menelek heard about the modern method of executing criminals using electric chairs, and he ordered 3 for his kingdom. When the chairs arrived, Menelik learned they would not work, as Ethiopia did not yet have an electrical power industry. Rather than waste his investment, Menelik used one of the chairs as his throne, sending another to Lique Mequas Abate.^{[1][dubious — see talk page]} The electric chair is an execution method in which the person being put to death is strapped to a chair and electrocuted through electrodes placed on the body. ... Transmission lines in Lund, Sweden Electric company redirects here. ...

Menelek was known for saying "We must resist the powers, to keep our independence."

References

• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

Encyclopædia Britannica, the 11th edition The Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition (1910–1911) is perhaps the most famous edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica. ... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ...

Bibliography

• Paul B. Henze. "Yohannes IV and Menelik II: The Empire Restored, Expanded, and Defended" in Layers of Time: A History of Ethiopia. New York: Palgrave, 2000. ISBN 0-312-22719-1
• David Levering Lewis. "Pawns of Pawns" in The Race to Fashoda. New York: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1987. ISBN 1-55584-058-2

External links

• Imperial Ethiopia Homepages - Emperor Menelik II the Early Years
• Imperial Ethiopia Homepages - Emperor Menelik II the Later Years
• Ethiopian Treasures - Emperor Menelik II